Milton Wallace Butts Biography


	This biography appears on pages 1152, 1155 in "History of Dakota 
	Territory" by George W. Kingsbury, Vol. IV (1915) and was 
	scanned, OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net.

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				MILTON WALLACE BUTTS. 

	One of the prominent and successful business men of Belle Fourche 
is Milton Wallace Butts, who is a dealer in ice, coal and fuel and also 
conducts a livery and transfer business. He was born in Linn county, 
Kansas, October 2, 1861, a son of Milton Wallace and Cynthia A. 
(Dunham) Butts, natives of New York and Ohio respectively The father 
emigrated from New York to Illinois and thence to Indiana, where his 
marriage occurred. He later removed to Kansas and in 1862 went to Cerro 
Gordo county, Iowa, where he followed agricultural pursuits during the 
remainder of his life, passing away in 1902, eight years after the 
death of his wife, who died in 1894. 

	Milton Wallace Butts was the fourth in order of birth in a family 
of five children and his educational opportunities were those afforded 
by the schools of Cerro Gordo county, Iowa. When but seventeen years of 
age he began farming rented land in Iowa, being so occupied until 
twenty-one, when he removed to St. Onge, South Dakota. He worked for 
others for a few years upon farms and was then employed in Belle 
Fourche for a year. Following that he was on the range for two years 
and then engaged in the transfer business in Belle Fourche until 1896. 
In that year he was elected sheriff, but after serving for a year 
joined the rush to the Alaskan gold fields, spending two years at 
Dawson City and three years at Cape Nome. Although his mining ventures 
did not prove a financial success, he has never regretted going and can 
never forget his many experiences in the far north. He went from Dawson 
City to Cape Nome, a distance by trail of over eighteen hundred miles, 
with a dog team, leaving the former place on the 16th of February and 
arriving at Cape Nome on the 2d of April. 

	Upon leaving Alaska Mr. Butts returned to Belle Fourche and 
engaged in the transfer and livery business. For some time he had from 
fifteen to twenty-five driving teams but of later years has kept but 
six driving teams, while he uses from six to eight teams in the 
transfer business. He also deals in ice, coal and fuel, which is 
proving a profitable venture. Mr. Butts and his partner own a whole 
block of valuable city property, including their livery and transfer 
barns, but the ice houses, storehouses, coal sheds, etc., are located 
elsewhere. 

	Mr. Butts was married in June, 1904, to Miss Pearl Helm, a native 
of Mitchell county, Iowa. Her parents, William and Keziah (Davis) Helm, 
were both born in Wisconsin, whence they removed to Iowa, spending the 
remainder of their lives in that state. The mother died in 1903 and the 
father in 1914. Mr. and Mrs. Butts have a son, Wallace, whose natal day 
was June 20, 1908. 

	Mr. Butts is a democrat and, as before stated, was elected 
sheriff of Butte county in 1896 but resigned in 1897 to go to Alaska. 
For three terms he has been a member of the city council of Belle 
Fourche and casts his vote for many measures that have proved of value 
to his municipality. He belongs to the Masonic order, holding 
membership in all of the Scottish Rite bodies from the blue lodge to 
the consistory and having also crossed the sands of the desert with the 
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is likewise identified with the 
Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and not only in the organizations 
named but also in business and social circles is highly respected and 
esteemed.